Review of Treeless Mountain (2009) by Clare W — 03 May 2009

[font=Century Gothic]In "Treeless Mountain," even as a young girl, Jin(Hee Yeon Kim) has to decide between playing with her friends after school or making it back home in time to pick up her younger sister Bin(Song Hee Kim) from the babysitter before being reprimanded for being late. Their mother(Soo Ah Lee) is out for most of the day and she is about to take a more prolonged absence from their lives, leaving her daughters in the care of her sister-in-law(Mi Hyang Kim). She promises them she will return by the time they fill up their piggy bank. On the safe side, the girls stake out the bus stop they last see her at.[/font].

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[font=Century Gothic]Even though the plot may seem familiar, "Treeless Mountain" is a sweet and touching movie. However, it runs out of steam some time before its abrupt ending. Shot from an angle meant to recreate a child's view of the world, the movie contrasts the children's needs and wants versus the adults' lives. It is unclear what the mother's quest involves exactly except for a man who might be the girls' father. What the aunt assumes is that it will not take that long, for she is originally understanding, but soon loses whatever patience she once had as time moves on and they become more of a burden for her.[/font].